“Small but exceptional”; the newest Bordeaux vintage must be priced to engage the market.
Early intelligence ahead of the official trade tasting week is that 2025 is the smallest Bordeaux vintage since 1991 and the quality is very promising. The perfect combination of lower supply and higher quality should make this an En Primeur campaign to get the juices flowing. But will it all come down to price?
The pricing strategy set by the Bordeaux Chateaux and their courtiers will be more important this year than ever as the future of the En Primeur process itself is being questioned.
The fine wine trade needs to feel Bordeaux is working with the supply chain through to the consumer when it comes to the 2025 En Primeur campaign.
What can we learn from the 2024 En Primeur campaign?
At this point last year, a growing optimism with tentative growth in Q1 was hijacked by President Trump’s threat of a 200% tariff on European goods imported to the US. The 2024 wines were released with this and the ongoing conflict in Gaza as significant factors shaping market sentiment.
Release prices for the 2024 vintage were discounted by an average 25% on the 2023 wines. Older, physically available wines, in some cases with higher quality scores, were available on the secondary market at lower prices than those the allocations of embryonic 2024 were being released at. The pricing strategy left many merchants feeling the chateaux were out of touch with the market conditions or choosing to ignore them.
The campaign overall did not excite nor provide the much hoped for boost the market needed. The 2024 release prices proved to be unsustainable for those wines that had been priced at a premium.
However, it wasn’t all bad. Some of the leading estates did recognise the pressure the market was under after three years of correction post the Covid bull run. Chateau Lafite Rothschild, unusually for the great First Growth estate, was one of the first to release its 2024 wines. The Chateau priced its Grand Vin and second wine, Carruades de Lafite more than 30% below its 2023 wines on release and at a level last seen in 2014. This was a significant message that influenced some estates to follow suit with sizeable discounts to 2023.
Right Bank icon Cheval Blanc also set a great example. The legendary St Emilion estate has, in recent years, been consistently one of the earliest to release and it too set a significant discount to 2023.
Cheval Blanc priced to entice, the market bought and the 2024 wine has had a more positive price performance than its peers since release. The Chateau has been notable in recent years as being more empathetic in its pricing to the conditions that have prevailed within the sector growing brand loyalty and its customer base.
Another success in the 2024 campaign was Chateau Les Carmes Haut Brion, which priced its 2024 on release at the same level as the similarly rated and physically available 2021. This strategy was well received and Carmes' 2024 has had a good price performance, perhaps aided by scarcer supply due to lower production levels.
The supply factor with Bordeaux 2025
The 2025 vintage is the smallest in 34 years, with 2024 being the second smallest. Unlike the highly climatically challenged and very wet 2024, which was devasted by mildew, frost and hail, conditions were more benign in 2025, but extremely dry.
Flowering was quicky and evenly set and sufficient warmth in late spring for pollinators and ripening. A hotter growing season than recent vintages may have been the signature characteristic with 2025 being recognised as an extremely dry vintage with rain fall levels most like the outstanding 2019, and 1990. Supply was affected by drought in some areas but also by the loss of vines in Bordeaux.
Average Vineyard Yield by appellation
| Appellation | 2019 Av Hl / Ha | 2023 Av Hl / Ha | 2024 Av Hl / Ha | 2025 Av Hl / Ha | 10-year average | 2025 % change to 10 year av. |
| Margaux | 49.2 | 37.7 | 33.1 | 28.8 | 39.2 | -26.5% |
| St Julien | 45.5 | 50.3 | 32.5 | 26.4 | 36.3 | -27.3 |
| Pauillac | 46.7 | 47.1 | 29.5 | 30.2 | 40.2 | -24.9 |
| St Estephe | 49.7 | 51.6 | 33.6 | 36.8 | 44.4 | -17.1 |
| Pessac – Leognan R | 47.2 | 38.1 | 39.0 | 31.0 | 35.6 | -12.9 |
| St Emilion Grand Cru | 43.0 | 40.5 | 36.4 | 34.7 | 37.9 | -8.4 |
| Pomerol | 43.0 | 45.2 | 28.4 | 25.9 | 36.6 | -29.2 |
| Sauternes / Barsac | 13.6 | 12.2 | 12.7 | 12.5 | 13.7 | -8.8 |
Av Hl / Ha = Average Hectolitre / Hectare.
Source: Calculated from Duanes data compiled by the CIVB Service Economie & Etudes.
Our opinion
Members of our team are attending the 2025 En Primeur tastings at key chateaux this week in Bordeaux, and they will be sharing their experience and views on the wines. We can also expect the world’s top wine critics to publish their quality scores imminently. So we will soon see if the rumours of a high-quality vintage hold weight.
Supply will be a factor in terms of the size of the 2025 vintage along with the volume released at this En Primeur stage. A growing number of chateaux are reducing their allocations, keeping wines in their cellars to release when more mature, near or at their drinking windows, at higher prices.
Ultimately, price will determine the success of the 2025 campaign and potentially the future of the En Primeur process for Bordeaux. Once the wines start being released, we will learn how the pricing strategy has been set and will then make our own decisions on key wines for investors.
Liv-ex revealed in its report on the 2024 campaign last year that En Primeur sales were down around 60% on the 2023 releases. There is no doubt that US buyers had stayed away because of Trump’s tariff threats and merchants were still under significant pressure because of the prolonged downturn, but prices had to entice, and they did not overall. Those chateaux that did, bought loyalty and this will set them in good stead for the 2025 campaign.
Whatever the commercial angle, the first taste of Bordeaux’s newest wines, catching up with our friends in Bordeaux, and enjoying the region's traditions and celebrations that are the fanfare of the En Primeur week in Bordeaux are looked forward to every year.
Our team will be reporting on social channels, blog and in our Newsletter and you can call 0203 384 2262 to find out more about investing in En Primeur wine.